Mission Statement

Foster and encourage solid historical preaching of God's Word through composing, writing, printing, publishing, selling and delivering of a newspaper and books to further God's Word.

Strategy

Christian News efforts to advance its mission statement: Proclaiming faith in the saving merits of Jesus Christ as the only way to heaven. Emphasizing that the Holy Trinity is the only God who exists. Exposing the Universalism which has taken over most major denominations. Defending the inerrancy of Holy Scripture and opposing the destructive higher critical notions of the Bible promoted by liberal scholars.

Vision Statement

Promote a Twenty-First Century Reformation because the major have departed further from God's Word than Rome did 500 years ago at the first Reformation.

Editor

Philip Hale (2020-present)

Pastor Philip Hale was born in Oklahoma and raised in Keller, Texas. He attended the University of Texas at Austin and graduated with a degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering. After working very briefly as an engineer in Austin, he attended Concordia Theological Seminary in Fort Wayne. Following a vicarage in Fredericksburg, Iowa, under Pastor Ron Koch, he graduated in 2007 and was called to St. Paul Lutheran Church in Bancroft, Nebraska and then later to St. John Lutheran Church in Lyons, Nebraska as part of a dual parish. He was installed as associate pastor of Zion Lutheran Church, Omaha, NE in August, 2015 and remains in that call currently. In 2007 he married his wife Aubri. They have been blessed with their 10th living child.

Rev. Hale's seminary research paper, written under Dr. Roland Ziegler, was entitled: "A Description and Critique of Narrative Criticism: The Relation of Biblical Interpretation, History, and Theology." He presented at the 2013 ACELC Conference in Austin, Texas: "A Doctrinal View of Worship." His book Confessing the Scriptural Christ against Modern Idolatry: Inspiration, Inerrancy, and Truth in Scientific and Biblical Conflict was published in 2016. His presentation at the 2017 ACELC Free Conference was "The Intertwined Errors of Transsexualism, Malleable Gender Roles, the Body Modification Movement, and Personal Identity." The 1955 CPH book by Fritz Zerbst (trans. by Albert G. Merkens), The Office of Woman in the Church: A Study in Practical Theology, was edited and republished by Hale in 2017. A Doctrinal Exposition of Galatians: A Sermonic Commentary for Laymen, by Rev. Hale, was published in 2018. He also wrote the book Aspects of Forgiveness: The Basis for Justification and its Modern Denial (2019).

Herman Otten (1962-2019)

Rev. Otten was the pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church, New Haven, MO from 1958 to 2013. He received his elementary education in the public schools of New York. He was a graduate of Concordia Prep and Concordia Junior College, Bronxville NY. In 1957 he graduated from Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, MO with a Master of Divinity and Washington University with a Master of Arts in history. In 1958 he received a Master in Sacred Theology from Concordia Seminary. He also took a few graduate courses at Columbia University in NY and the University of Rochester. From 1962-2019 he edited Christian News, a weekly newspaper with readers in all 50 states and many foreign countries. He is the author of several books and is the co-editor of An American Translation of the Bible by Dr. William Beck. He lectured widely throughout the U.S. He married the former Grace Anderson, a Deaconess and graduate of Valparaiso University, in 1960. They had 7 children, all whom obtained college degrees and are active in their local Lutheran Churches. Herman was taken to His Lord in glory on April 24, 2019.

Christian News is a newspaper that covers current events in the theological secular arenas and how they affect your church and life.

Christian News is not an official organ of any church-body, but an independent publication designed to supply rank and file Christians with information needed to face the present crises in Christendom.

Christian News is not a doctrinally neutral observer, but is committed to the full historic Christian faith, as it is authoritatively revealed in the written Word of God, the Holy Scriptures, and correctly set forth in the Confessions of the Orthodox Church to wit, the Book of Concord in 1580.

CHRISTIAN NEWS is therefore unalterably opposed to the various fashionable "theological" systems which sacrifice the supernatural mysteries of the Christian Faith to the proletarian prejudices of "Modern Man's" computerized mentality. CHRISTIAN NEWS holds that the continued use of Christian words and phrases, and the lip-service paid to "the Scriptures and the Confessions" by the practitioners of this new anti-Christian "theology" are totally dishonest and hypocritical.Given the radical, indeed mortal nature of the doctrinal conflict and the need to reach and undeceive millions of rank and file Christians who have no idea of the fate being prepared for their churches under cover of pious-sounding slogans and platitudes, strong straight forward, and sustained criticism is to be expected. Those who decry this as "negativism" either do not understand the gravity of the crisis or are themselves in league with the enemy. Scripture is extremely "negative" whenever it deals with apostasy and hypocrisy! And these are dominant features of modern church life.The writers of CHRISTIAN NEWS claim no sort of infallibility for themselves. They therefore invite readers to notify them of any errors of fact, judgment, or theology, which may occur from time to time, so that suitable corrections may be made.In Christian News you will find news, commentary, devotions, book reviews, and books, video and audio for sale. They will all support historic Christianity, Biblical Missions, and true Christian unity.

"Of all the religious papers and publications I receive, I rank Christian News among the finest." (Editor, Guidelines For Today).

"Christian News is a religious weekly unlike any other in the world. Crammed with news articles, columns of comment, and book reviews photo-reproduced, as well as much original material, this Lutheran paper has the polemical fervor of a lost age of religious controversy." (National Catholic Register).

History of Lutheran News, Inc.

The first issue was published Dec. 15, 1962 a mimeographed 8 page newspaper. We then progressed to a sheet fed press for 2 issues and February 1963 we had found a printer with a new "cold type" press. They gave a very reasonable quote and the first issue with the Missourian Publishing Company was February 25, 1963. They are still our printer. January 1, 1968 we changed the name of the paper to Christian News in order to broaden our base, but we did not change our purpose. Lutheran News, Inc. continues to be the parent company that publishes Christian News, An American Translation of the Holy Bible, and other religious materials.